Suction Machine Comprising a Housing Made of Expanded Plastic Material

ABSTRACT

The invention relates to a suction device for dental, medical or industrial purposes, comprising a suction system and a housing ( 12 ) in which the suction system ( 50 ) is accommodated. The suction device is characterized in that the housing ( 12 ) is composed of at least two housing shells ( 14, 16 ) that can be assembled and are manufactured from a foamable material, in that at least one of the housing shells ( 14, 16 ) has support surfaces that support and/or hold the components of the suction system ( 50 ) in the housing ( 12 ), and in that at least one of the housing shells ( 14, 16 ) forms at least one functional component of the suction system ( 50 ).

The present invention relates to a suction device for dental, medical orindustrial purposes, comprising a suction system and a housing in whichthe suction system is accommodated.

Suction devices or systems are commonly known and are offered for sale,for example by the Applicant, in the most diverse variants. Thus, forexample, a suction device is known from publication DE 10 2006 058 955A1. Basically, suction systems of this kind serve, for example, to sucksubstances which are produced in the course of dental treatment, such aswaste water, blood, saliva, dentine or various filling materials, out ofthe patient's oral cavity and, optionally, to separate and deposit them.A suction system of this kind for dental purposes comprises a number ofcomponents such as, for example, a suction unit, a separating unit, adepositing unit, a control unit, etc., which have to be connected to oneanother to form a complete system. Individual components are set up, forexample, on shaped sheet-metal parts or are located on a housing part,such as a sound-damper housing for example. On delivery, the suctionsystems are not directly ready for connection, particularly because eventhe control unit is accommodated separately in a switch box and hasfirst to be installed. Additional noise-reducing measures are requiredin order to minimise the noises that occur when such a suction system isin operation.

Although suction systems of this kind have proved successful inpractice, there remains an ongoing desire to configure suction systemsor devices in a more compact manner, to simplify the composition and toreduce the noise emission.

In the case of the abovementioned suction device, this object isachieved through the fact that the housing is composed of at least twohousing shells that can be assembled and are manufactured from afoamable material, at least one of the housing shells has supportsurfaces that support and/or hold the components of the suction systemin the housing, and at least one of the housing shells forms at leastone functional component of the suction system.

In other words, this means that the suction device now has a housingwhich not only simply surrounds the individual components of the suctiondevice but, what is more, also provides additional functions, that is tosay itself forms, in particular, functional components. Consequently,functional components are integrated into the housing which is formedfrom at least two housing shells that can be assembled. In addition,there is moulded into, that is to say integrated into, at least one ofthe housing shells, a support surface that supports and/or holds acomponent of the suction system, so that it is possible to dispense withspecial frame elements, metal plates, etc. Likewise, as a result ofthis, no fastening means, or only a few, such as screws, etc., areneeded, since the individual components are accommodated and held inmoulded formations that are constructed therein.

There are manifold advantages of such a suction device, among whichparticular mention should be made here of a compact composition withlittle outlay on assembly. Another important advantage is to be seen inthe fact that a very high degree of noise insulation can be achieved byusing a foamed material for the housing shells. Still another advantageis to be seen in the fact that structural outlay is reduced as a resultof the integration of functional components into the housing shells,since these functional components do not have to be provided separately.It is thereby possible to reduce the number of functioning partsrequired, which has major effects, not only on costs, but also on theoutlay on fitting.

With the aid of these measures, it is possible to provide the user witha suction device which can be brought into operation with minimal outlayon installation.

In one preferred further development, the suction system comprises atleast one suction unit and/or at least one separating unit, whichseparates the sucked-off air from the liquid or solid substances, and/ora depositing unit which deposits, for example, amalgam.

In one preferred further development, the foamable material in questionis a plastic material. In particular, the housing shells are expandedfrom a plastic material.

A foamable plastic material of this kind is, for example, polypropylene.Obviously it is also possible to use, in addition to expandable plasticmaterials, natural materials such as maize foam for example.

As has already been mentioned above, an essential aspect of theinvention is to be seen in the fact that at least one of the housingshells forms at least one functional component of the suction system.The functional component in question may be, for example, anair-conducting duct, one or more supporting feet, a sound-insulatingelement, a vibration-decoupling element and/or a holding element forlines, connections, etc.

In other words, this means that, for example, ducts for conducting airare provided in one or both the foamed housing shells, so that it ispossible to dispense with the former hose lines. Furthermore, there maybe provided in the foamed housing shells, for example, gripping regionsin which lines, etc., can then be inserted and secured. Finally, thehousing shells have a sound-insulating and vibration-decoupling action,it being possible to further improve these effects by choosing theinternal geometry in a suitable manner. Because of the high degree offlexibility of the housing shells in terms of design, it is conceivablypossible to integrate other functional components into them.

In one preferred further development, there is moulded into at least oneof the housing shells at least one accommodating region which serves toaccommodate at least one component of the suction device. Such acomponent of the suction device may be, for example, an electricalconnecting element, a hose-connecting element, a control unit housing,an electrical line or a cable guide for lines.

In other words, this means that there are provided in the housing shellsclearances into which the components of the suction device can beintroduced and which then at least partly surround the components thathave been introduced. Thus it is possible to partition off or separatecertain components, such as a control unit housing for example, fromother components inside the two housing shells, which has advantages,for example, in the case of air conduction, particularly for coolingpurposes. Electrical lines or other lines can be routed into clearancesof this kind in the housing shells in a simple and defined manner, sothat, for example, contact with hot parts inside the housing cannotoccur.

In conjunction with the support surfaces provided in the housing shells,the components, such as the control unit, fan unit, separating unitand/or driving unit for example, can be accommodated in the housingshells in a simple manner since, on the one hand, the positions for theindividual components are predetermined in a fixed manner and, on theother hand, no other fastening means etc. are required since thecomponents are held securely via the support surfaces when the housingshells are assembled.

All in all, what is produced is a suction device which can be of lighterand more compact construction and in the case of which a weight savingof 30 to 40% can be realised. Furthermore, the noise emissions aremarkedly reduced through the fact that the respective components areencapsulated by the housing shells. The use of small parts such asscrews, cable clamps, vibration-dampers, etc. are reduced to a minimum,resulting in marked advantages when fitting is carried out.

Obviously the features which have been mentioned above and which are tobe explained again below can be used, not only in the combinationindicated in each case, but also in other combinations or on their own,without departing from the scope of the present invention.

Further advantages and refinements of the invention emerge from thefollowing detailed description of a preferred form of embodiment andfrom the accompanying drawings, in which:

FIG. 1 shows a suction device according to the invention, in a firstperspective view;

FIG. 2 shows the suction device according to the invention, in a secondperspective view;

FIGS. 3 a, b show the suction device according to the invention, in anexploded perspective representation;

FIGS. 4 a, b show, in each case, an internal view of a housing shell ofthe suction device according to the invention, in a perspectiverepresentation;

FIGS. 5 a, b show the two housing shells with the individual componentsinserted, in a perspective representation;

FIG. 6 shows a sectional view of a suction device according to theinvention, for the purpose of explaining functional components; and

FIG. 7 shows another sectional view of the suction device according tothe invention.

A suction system or suction device is shown in a perspectiverepresentation in FIG. 1 and is identified by the reference numeral 10.A suction device of this kind is used, for example, for dental purposesand serves to suck liquids such as saliva, blood, etc., and solidsubstances, such as, for example, plastic material, ceramics, amalgam,precious metals, etc., out of the oral cavity of a patient who is beingtreated. Under these circumstances, the suction device 10 is providedeither in the immediate vicinity of the treatment chair or else remotelyfrom the latter, for example in another area. In addition, a suctiondevice 10 of this kind may be designed for one or more treatmentstations. Without such removal by suction, a cooling spray in the formof an aerosol cloud which is used by modern high-speed instruments wouldspread throughout the treatment room. The germs, bacteria and virusescontained in such an aerosol cloud would allow a risk of infection toarise, which is to be prevented.

For this purpose, the suction device 10 has various modules which areaccommodated in a housing 12. This housing 12 consists of a number ofhousing shells 14, 16, preferably two. The two housing shells 14, 16 arecapable of being assembled, which means, among other things, that thosesurfaces of the two housing shells which face towards one another areshaped so as to fit one another. The overall result is a substantiallyclosed housing 12, which only possesses openings for feeding power, airand liquids in and out.

The two housing shells 14, 16 are preferably produced from the samematerial, the latter preferably being a foamable plastic material. Afoamable plastic material of this kind is, for example, polypropylene.Obviously other foamable materials, in particular natural materials, arealso conceivably possible as the material for the housing. As will beexplained again later on, the material for the housing 12 is selected,among other things, according to its damping capacity as regards soundand vibrations.

On one of its sides 22, the housing 12, which is preferablyparallelepipedal, possesses three circular openings 18 in whichconnecting elements, for example for hose lines or pipelines, areinserted. The connecting elements, which are identified by the referencenumeral 20, may have connecting surfaces, for example threads, on theperiphery, so that hose lines can be connected in a simple manner. Inthe present exemplary embodiment, the opening 18 on the right in FIG. 1is intended for blowing out waste air, the opening 18 for conductingaway secretion that has been deposited, and the opening 18 on the leftfor sucking in air and secretion from a patient's oral cavity. A furtherslit-like opening 23, which likewise serves for blowing out air, isprovided in the upper region of this side 22.

As already mentioned, the housing 12 is assembled from the two housingshells 14, 16, the line of separation between said two housing shellsbeing identified by the reference numeral 24. The three circularopenings 18 are intersected by this line of separation 24 on the side22, which means that these openings 18 in the housing 12 are formed bycircular segment-shaped clearances, which are open at the rim, in thetwo housing shells.

On the lower side, which forms the base 26, of the lower housing shell16, there are likewise provided openings 28 which provide a connectionto the interior space of the housing 12. These openings 28, too, can beused for the purpose of sucking in or blowing out air.

Also formed on the base 26 are four supporting feet 30, said supportingfeet 30 being an integral constituent part of the lower housing shell16. In other words, this means that these supporting feet 30 are mouldedin conjunction with the housing shell when it is manufactured, andconsequently do not have to be connected to the base in any way, forexample by bonding or screwing.

Finally, it is possible to make out, in the representation in FIG. 2,two more clearances 32 which are provided at the transition between thebase and the side and which serve as gripping recesses 33.

Another opening in the housing 12 is located on the upper side—the lid36 of the upper housing shell 14—and is identified by the referencenumeral 38. This opening 38 is of slit-like construction in order toprevent the possibility of foreign bodies getting into the interior ofthe housing 12.

Finally, it is also possible to make out, from the outside, anelectronics housing 40, the externally located cover plate 41 of whichis approximately L-shaped and extends from the lid side onto the side22. This electronics housing 40 contains the constituent parts requiredfor control and power supply purposes and is supplied from outside via amains plug which can be plugged into the mains socket that can be seen.The cover plate 41 terminates on the side 22 in the region of theopening 23 and is constructed in such a way that air is able to flow tothe outside from the housing 12 through the opening 23.

The housing 12 is represented in the open position in FIGS. 3 a and 3 b,so that the internals of said housing 12 are visible. Accommodatedwithin the housing 12 is a suction system which is identified, ingeneral, by the reference numeral 50. This suction system 50 may have anumber of modules, namely, in particular, a suction unit 54 or suctionmachine 54, for example a separating unit 52, which is preferablyconstructed as a radial suction machine 55, and in addition, forexample, a depositing unit for depositing amalgam or other accessories.Since the composition of a suction system of this kind is commonlyknown, it will not be gone into any further. At this point, it shouldalso be observed that the suction system 50 may also comprise a numberof the abovementioned individual modules, that is to say, for example,two or more suction machines.

For the purpose of accommodating the suction system 50, the two housingshells 14, 16 have, on the sides 44 and 46 that face towards oneanother, clearances which are adapted to said suction system 50, sothat, as emerges from FIG. 3 b, the individual modules of the suctionsystem 50 can be simply inserted in the lower housing shell 16, and arethen held securely in the housing 12 by putting on the upper housingshell 14. Consequently, no metal framework or the like is requiredinside the housing 12 in order to hold the modules of the suction system50 in a fixed position in relation to one another.

The two inner sides 44, 46 of the housing shells 14, 16 each possess arim 48 which has a step. On the one hand, this step permits definedpositioning of the upper housing shell 14 on the lower housing shell 16,since the step 48 on the upper housing shell 14 is a “negative” of thelower step. Furthermore, this step leads to a more leakproof connection,so that the interior space of the housing 12 is more successfullyencapsulated.

The inner sides of the two housing shells 14, 16 can now be seen,without the suction system 50 inserted, in the two FIGS. 4 a and 4 b.The lower housing shell 16 has a first depression 60 which is adapted tothe lower part of the separating unit 52 and supports the latter.Adjacent to this depression, which has an annular supporting rim 62, isanother depression 64 which possesses the shape of a recumbenthalf-cylinder. This depression 64 is adapted to the suction unit 54 andsupports the latter. The depression 64 thus has the function of asupport surface for the suction unit, the two openings 28 being providedin the said depression 64.

The two depressions 60, 64 are separated by a wall which has, however, asemicircular cutout 67 which is open at the rim and is intended toaccommodate a tubular connecting element between the separating unit 52and the suction unit 54.

The inner side of the lower housing shell 16 also has a depression 70which opens, on one of its sides, into the depression 64 and, on itsother side, into a semi-cylindrical clearance or depression 72 which, inturn, opens into the opening 18 for the air outlet. A tubularsound-damping element 74 is inserted in this semi-cylindrical depression72. The two depressions 70, 72 are designed in such a way that an airflow can be conducted from the region of the depression 64, through thedepression 70 and the sound-damping element 74 lying in the depression72, to the outside through the opening 18.

On the inner side 44 of the upper housing shell 14, there are likewiseprovided depressions which are adapted to the corresponding geometry ofthe suction system 50. Thus, a cylindrical depression 76 is providedwhich then forms, together with the depression 64 in the lower housingshell 16, a substantially cylindrical receptacle for the suction unit54. There is also provided, for the separating unit 52, a depression 78,the geometry of which is adapted to the upper part of said separatingunit 52 and which, together with the depression 76, holds the suctionsystem 50 securely in the housing 12.

There is also provided, in the housing shell 14, a raised region 80which is adapted to the shape of the depression 70 and forms with thelatter, when the housing shells are put on, a duct which is closed inthe upward direction. This raised region 80 seals off the depression 70,so to speak, in the upward direction. For these sealing-off functions,there are provided in the lateral boundaries of the depression 70,mounting surfaces 82, for example, which interact with correspondingsurfaces 84. An air duct is thereby formed, in a manner comparable to atubular section, merely as a result of the configuration of the innersides of the two housing shells 14, 16.

In order to hold the sound-damping element 74 securely in the depression72, there is provided in the upper housing shell 14 a suitably shapedsupport surface or holding surface 86 which extends from the raisedregion 80 to the opening 18 shown on the right in FIG. 1. In FIG. 4 athere can be seen, inside this opening 18, a groove 88 which runs in theperipheral direction and which serves, for example, to accommodate asealing-off ring for a connecting element 20.

In FIG. 4 a, an opening 90 which opens into the region of theelectronics housing 40 is provided in the region between the supportsurface 86 and the depression 76. This opening 90 has the function of aduct 91 which is intended to direct air from the region of the suctionunit 54 into the region of the electronics housing 40.

The two FIGS. 5 a and 5 b show the inner sides 44, 46 of the two housingshells 14, 16, with the inserted suction system 50, sound-dampingelement 74 and connecting elements 20.

These connecting elements 20 preferably possess an annular web or flange94 which engages in the groove 88 and thereby seals off the opening 20on the one hand, and, on the other, secures the connecting element 20against displacement in the axial direction.

As likewise emerges from the two FIGS. 5 a, 5 b, the suction unit 54,which is designed as a radial suction machine 55, has a lateral airoutlet 96 out of which the suction air, which has been freed fromsecretions, is blown. Said air outlet 96 opens into the depression 70which forms, together with the raised region 80 in the upper housingshell 14, an air duct which opens into the tubular sound-damping element74. This sound-damping element 74 then conducts the blown-out air to theopening 18 in which the connecting element 20 is provided.

It can be seen in FIG. 5 a that the suction unit 54—viewed in thelongitudinal direction—has a central region 98 with cooling ribs whichis smaller in diameter than the two outer longitudinal regions. Sincethe two depressions 64, 76 in combination have—viewed in thelongitudinal direction—an identical diameter, a clear space 100 isproduced around the said central region 98. At the same time, this clearspace 100 possesses a connection to the opening 90.

In FIG. 7, this clear space 100, which surrounds the said central region98 of the suction unit 94 can be seen in its entirety. In addition tothis, the said clear space possesses a connection to the outside via theopenings 28 in the base of the lower housing shell 16. In addition tothis, it can be clearly seen in FIG. 7 that the clear space 100 opensinto the opening 90 and the duct 91. Said duct 91 opens into a clearregion which is provided in the upper housing shell 14 and whichaccommodates the electronics housing 40 and is sealed off by the coverplate 41 in the upward direction and towards the front in relation tothe side 22. There is a connection to the outside only via the opening23.

As a result of this special configuration of the two housing shells 14,16, it is possible to bring about an air flow which is sucked in throughthe openings 28 in the base of the lower housing shell 16, flows pastthe cooling ribs belonging to the central region 98 of the suction unit54 within the clear space 100, into the duct 91 and then passes into thespace bounded by the cover plate 41 and finally flows to the outside viathe opening 23. This air flow serves, on the one hand, for cooling thesuction unit 54 and, on the other hand, for cooling electricalcomponents within the electronics housing 40. The various surfaces ofthe two housing shells 14, 16 consequently form air-conducting ductswithout any additional constituent parts being needed for this purpose.

FIG. 6 shows another sectional view of the suction device 10, in whichthe suction unit 54 has been omitted and the separating unit 52 isrepresented instead. The sectional view in FIG. 6 provides anunobstructed view of the duct 91 which runs perpendicularly upwards intothe region below the cover plate 41 of the electronics housing 40.Opening into this duct 91 is not only the clear space 100 which has beendescribed above and which surrounds the suction unit 54, but also a duct102 which runs horizontally and provides a connection to a clear space104. This clear space 104 surrounds at least part of the upper region ofthe separating unit 52 and possesses a connection to the opening 38 onthe upper side of the upper housing shell 14. This clear space 104 makesit possible to conduct air round the upper region of the separating unit52 and into the duct 102 and from there, via the duct 91, into theregion lying underneath the cover plate 41, and to the outside throughthe opening 23. This air flow is generated by the separating unit 52 andserves mainly for cooling the latter. Furthermore, this air flow alsoadditionally cools components within the electronics housing 40.

It emerges from FIGS. 6 and 7 that the duct 91 combines two air flowswhich cool the suction unit 54 and separating unit 52 individually ineach case and also, in addition, jointly cool electronic componentswithin the electronics housing 40. These air-conducting elements areconfigured solely by suitably configuring the two housing shells 14, 16,so that separate structural parts, such as hose lines, etc., are notrequired.

It becomes apparent, all in all, that the two housing shells 14, 16 forma multiplicity of functional components without any other structuralparts being required for this purpose. These functional componentsinclude, for example, the air-conducting ducts which make it possible,for example, to conduct air round the suction unit 54 and the separatingunit 52 and the electronics housing 40. The supporting feet, holdingelements for lines, connections, motors, etc., or even theabove-described step on the rim as a sealing-off measure, can also bedescribed as functional components. In addition, sound-damping andvibration-decoupling is achieved by suitable selection of a foamable orexpandable material, so that other functional components are providedvia the housing shells 14, 16. Thus, for example, rubber cushions or thelike for vibration-decoupling are no long required.

Furthermore, the two housing shells 14, 16 provide support surfaceswhich, on the one hand, support the modules provided inside the housing12, such as, for example, the separating unit, suction unit orelectronics housing or, for example, valves, lines, etc., and, on theother hand, fix them in position inside the housing.

As a result of these measures, a very compact, light suction device canbe provided, which is very satisfactorily sound-damped andvibration-decoupled. In addition, the manufacture or fitting of thissuction device 10 is markedly simplified, compared with previoussolutions, since the modules have to be inserted in the housing shells14, 16 without having to carry out numerous screwing operations.

1. A suction device for dental, medical or industrial purposes, thesuction device comprising: a suction system; and a housing in which thesuction system is accommodated; wherein the housing is composed of atleast two housing shells that can be assembled and are manufactured froma foamable material, at least one of the housing shells has supportsurfaces that support and/or hold the components of the suction systemin the housing, and at least one of the housing shells forms at leastone functional component of the suction system.
 2. The suction deviceaccording to claim 1, wherein the suction system comprises at least onesuction unit and/or at least one separating unit and/or at least onedepositing unit.
 3. The suction device according to claim 1, wherein thefoamable material is a plastic material.
 4. The suction device accordingto claim 1, wherein the housing shells are expanded from a plasticmaterial.
 5. The suction device according to claim 1, wherein afunctional component is an air-conducting duct, a supporting foot, asound-insulating element, a vibration-decoupling element and/or aholding element for components of the suction device.
 6. The suctiondevice according to claim 5, wherein a number of supporting feet aremoulded onto at least one of the housing shells.
 7. The suction deviceaccording to claim 1, wherein there is moulded into at least one of thehousing shells at least one accommodating region which serves toaccommodate at least one component of the suction device.
 8. The suctiondevice according to claim 7, wherein a component of the suction deviceis an electrical connecting element, a hose-connecting element, acontrol unit housing, an electrical line and/or a cable guide for lines.9. The suction device according claim 1, wherein support surfaces for acontrol unit, a fan unit, a separating unit and/or a driving unit aremoulded into at least one of the housing shells.
 10. The suction deviceaccording to claim 1, wherein at least one opening, which serves as anair inlet opening or air outlet opening, is moulded into at least one ofthe housing shells.
 11. The suction device according to claim 1, whereinthe housing is formed from two housing shells (14, 16).
 12. The suctiondevice according to one claim 1, wherein the housing completelyencapsulates the suction system.
 13. The suction device according toclaim 1, wherein the suction unit is a radial suction machine.
 14. Thesuction device according to claim 5, wherein an air-conducting duct isrouted round a region of the suction unit and/or of the separating unit.15. The suction device according to claim 14, wherein the air-conductingduct is routed into the region of the control unit.
 16. The suctiondevice according to claim 1, wherein an air-conditioning duct is routedround a region of the suction unit and/or of the separating unit.